The Town Church
Page 1 Sadicus :Since I reach the town on the 23 of July 1445 the local Church has been locked and empty. I have had to walk by on my way to work, to the market and to the local taverns, I feel a sadness pass through me whenever I walk past the darkend windows and the large closed doors. :Well soon I hope that this will change, as I have contacted the Church Bodies with a request to work and help the new priest when he or she is appointed. How I long to open those doors wide and welcome all the town inside, to look upon the inside and clear out the dust. :I am hoping to hear back form them soon so that the church can begin to operate on some level. Sigismonde :I'll help you, of course. :Sigismonde shows the broom in her hand. :When shall we begin? Latan :The cardinal Latan, archbishop of York, n enters the new church of Kendal and is welcomed by Sadicus. After a short prayer, Eminence Latan prepare the ceremony for Sadicus ordaining as a deacon of the Aristotelian Church. :“Sadicus do you swear to serve God and the Aristotelian Church in the parish of Kendal and to look after the parishioners?” :« Yes I swear » answered Sadicus on his knees in front of the prelate, the voice tight with emotion. : « With this tonsure I make you a servant of God and an under-deacon. :Then he puts his hands on the face of Sadicus and meditate a few seconds. : « With this laying on, I allow you to celebrate the baptism and preach the divine words, and make you a Deacon. You'll be holding the mass by my leave, until the time a new priest comes to Kendal. If you're looking for advise do not hesitate to contact the rest of your brothers who meet in Rome and in the Archdiocese Cathedral. May Aristotle and Christos guide you and help you guide your parishers in their lifes. ” Gom :Gom enters the church and is surprised. Whit Aristotle and Christos, your Eminenz the cardinal of the England is present. Honour offering leans Gom and sits down then quietly into one of the rear banks, in order not to disturb the ceremony. Strained he regards the happening. Sadicus :I am greatly moved that his Eminence came to carry out the service today. It has been a long and emotional day, to start the day with a long shift in te mines to the north of Kendal before coming back to be welcomed into the church. :I now feel that this town is beginning to come together, and this is one more step in the right direction. I hope that I can make the most of this gift and help out this town. :As for now I must start to get the church ready and perpare the sermon for tomoorow. Sadicus :It is time, the church has sat empty for to long and tomorrow morning is my first serman. The church must be at its best. :I left my home on the northen side of the town and headed past the church and into the town square, to The Teutonic Pub, to meet Sigismonde. Picking up some buckets and mops, before heading back down to the church. Unlocking the back door we enter into the back room, where we are to start are work. :We have a large amount of work to carry out and we start right away, placing candels in the holders and lighting them so we can see and then moving on to cleaning the floor and hanging up the robes for myself, the priest and the choir boys, must start looking for them tomorrow afternoon. :We move through into the main part of the church and place the candels . Sigismonde moves off and starts to clean the floor while I begin to clean and prepare the alter for tomorow. We finish around the same time and even though the bells can not ring out, we decided to leave it as we have no bell ringers at this point, most also look into that. :We head out of the back door, locking it as we go, we head through the grave yard which has been well maintained by people working for the church, back to the The Teutonic Pub where we returned the the buckets and mops. :I say good bye and head back home to finish my serman and practise untill the early morning. I hope things go well and the people of the town know. scottytheone :No more taverns deacon?? :hmmmmmmmmmmm Sadicus :Sigismonde offered her help, so I went to where she was. Also I have no buckets at this time. I will try not to menchen any tavern unless the person that owns it offer help to the church or is Baptized or gets married. Sadicus :First I would like to welcome you to the first service at the town church. Todays sermand is taken form The Book of Virtues, Book one; The Atristelian Myth. :I will start after God havs called all the animals of the world together :The thunder rumbled, the clouds parted, and a soft light with its origins in space lit the sky. A great silence fell over the gathered creatures. Celestial gleam, a serious voice, penetrating, but soft and serene was next heard. The voice made itself understood thus: “Listen to me, you that I conceived, because I am your God. Without Me, you would not exist and to Me you owe all fidelity.” :God added: “A number among you have claimed to be My preferred, but never have I hitherto expressed favor towards any of you above any other. The time approaches that I will change this. The time comes that I make a choice among My creatures. The time comes that I will name a species among you to be “My children.” To make this choice, I will ask you a single question.” :God thus asked them: “You live thanks to Me, because I am your creator. You nourish yourselves, you reproduce, you raise your offspring. But you do not know why you live. According to you, what purpose have I given to life?” :The majority of the creatures could not answer. They looked one at the other, hoping to find in their neighbors the answer to this quite strange question. One could observe a fish remain happy, knowing nothing to say. A horse rubbed the ground with his shoes. An oak curved, hopelessly seeking the response in his roots. And even a dove scrape the head in a sign of reflection. :But one of them advanced. It seemed sure of itself and its answer. All the other species opened the passage to it and, soon, a space emerged around it. It raised its eyes toward God, but its glance was full with competence. It answered: “You made the creatures animated by the need to nourish themselves. You made the strong able to devour the weak ones. Without question, it is thus a question of ensuring the domination of the strong over the weak!” :It added: “I want of proof that I am the last representative of my species. Only the strongest survived among mine! If You name me “Your child,” I will be able to show You who, of all creatures, must dominate the world.” :It waited until God congratulated it for its answer, but in vain, because He did not answer it. :He turned to another group of creatures. It was precisely that group composed of the mankind, which had traversed the world. God knew that this group believed themselves to be rejected by Him. These humans thought that they were deprived of any talent. They believed themselves to be the deviants of creation because of their alleged inferiority. But, among them, the human which carried the name of Oane held, though without being sure, the answer to the question raised by the Most High. :Because Oane doubted, he often looked at the stars, hoping to see God. He loved God with a sincere love, but did not know if that were the true direction of all life. He wanted to give his answer well, but his group regarded him as weak spirited and nobody wanted to let him speak. But God was omniscient. He had listened to the group of humans complaining. But especially, He had perceived the love and the doubt in the heart of Oane. :Then, from the sky, a ray of light shone forth and alighted upon Oane. All the creatures were amazed, admiring the soft light, which haloed the human one. They moved aside then, leaving him alone to face God. He contemplated his illumined body with a glance full of curiosity. Then he turned to the members of his group. For the first time of his life, he could not see in their glance contempt, but only respect. :And God asked him: “And you, the human one, don't you have any answer for Me? I convened all My creation here to find that which will give the right answer to My question. You came and you did not answer. Then, now, I summon you to do it!”. Then, Oane, terrified by the severe tone of his creator, raised his eyes towards Him and hesitantly said: “But, Oh Most High, I do not know if my answer is right…” And God ordered to him: “Speak it to me and I will answer you!” :Then, Oane answered: “You made certain Your creatures would draw nourishment from each other and provide nourishment to each other. It is necessary for them to drive out and kill to nourish themselves. In the same way, it is necessary for them to fight to defend their lives. But there is none completely strong nor any entirely weak. Nobody is always higher nor always lower than the others. We all are plain in the life and we are all Your humble servants. Because You are our creator.” :“Therefore You gave talents to all Your creatures, each more beautiful than the last. Each one of them has its place in Your creation. Their talents make it possible for each one of them to find that place. So, there is no creature preferred of You, Oh Most High. You similarly love us all in the same way and we all must ourselves love You in return. Because, without You, we would not exist. You created us while nothing obliged You to do so and we must love You to thank You for this gesture.” :“We are certainly connected with the matter, certainly subjected to its laws, but our goal is to tend towards You, the Spirit Eternal and Perfect. Therefore, in my opinion, the purpose You gave to life is love.” Then God said: “Human, since you are the only one to have understood love, I make your kind My children. Thus, you know that the talent of your species is its capacity to love Me and to love each other. The other species can love only themselves." :I am sorry to keep you for so long, but we are all God's children and we must love all for that is why we were chosen. :Thank you for your time Latan :Happy to see that the first mass was held in the Church of Kendal, the Cardinal begins to look for a priest in the new town. If he doe not find a candidate he will have to look for one in another county of England, but he'd rather find a man (or woman!) from Kendal to begin with. Sadicus :The body of our Mayor is now lying in state in the town church. All those that wish to pay there respect may do so at any time before the funeral is held on friday. Gom :Gom entered the church, struck a cross and went to the dead lady. :The head lowered, he spoke a quiet prayer. Also the many, many other dead ones in the city is meant here. :Gom ignited a candle for it, then he turned to the exit. scottytheone :Scottytheone has sent a flower arrangement as he is unable to attend the funeral due to travel. It is with the utmost sadness that we have lost such a fine person. She had and will continue to always have a place of honour in the town of Kendall. Latan :1455 August 3rd :The Cardinal Latan after a wild ride in the countryside on the back of his mule, jump of the back of his “steed” and run into the Church, gasping. :“Sorry -arh-for making you wait –arh- my son Graul, but the ways –koff koff- of god are mysterious and well, you know!” :“Graul do you swear to serve God and the Aristotelian Church in the parish of Kendal and to look after the parishioners?” :« Yes I swear » answered Graul going down on his knees in front of the prelate, the voice tight with emotion and also surprise at seeing the Cardinal with a full load of vegetables in the bags of his mule. :« Do you swear celibacy and chastity ? Do you accept to devote your life for the rest of your days to the Community ?” :‘Yes I Swear and Accept to devote my life to the Aristotelian Church » :Eminence Cardinal Latan takes under his robe a long razor and shave the top of the head of Graul. : « With this tonsure I make you a servant of God and an under-deacon. :Then he puts his hands on the face of Graul and meditate a few seconds. : « With this laying on, I allow you to celebrate the baptism and preach the divine words, and make you a Deacon.” :Taking a chasuble, he lay it on the shoulders of the new deacon, and put some consecrated oil on his hands. : « With this unction, I allow you to celebrate the weddings and to provide the holly communion, may you lead your Aristotelian Brothers from birth to death and watch over their soul in the Aristotelian friendship. :« Graul in the name of God and Aristotle and all the Saints, I ordain you Priest and God’s servant.” :“I hope you’ll make me proud my son, and serve me as well as Kendal with all your heart. I also would like to thank Brother Sadicus for these days in this Church holding the masses for the Kendal good people. I’m sure he will continue to help father Graul in his duties. Please father Graul and Sadicus, embrace in the Aristotelian Friendship” :“Now I know that a person dear to the people of Kendal has gone to see God and Aristotle, and I will let both of you proceed with your duties, so as this soul will be guided to the light of heaven.” Sadicus :We have all come together today, to say goodbye to our Mayor. We are here to return her body to the earth and allow her soul to travel to face her jugment. :She passed on while in her office at the town hall, serving this town that we have all come to love. She work to improve all of our livies and the town will find her hard to replace. I would now like for each of you to take a moment to remeber her life. :After a few moment, rising his head Sadicus moves round the cofin, and walks towards the door. Stepping forward six people step forward and lift the cofin and follow. On exiting the church they head towards the easten edge of the graveyard, to a per dug grave. When the cofin is in place and everyone has join him Sadicus continues. :I AM the resurrection and the life, saith the Lord: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. :I KNOW that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth. And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another. :WE brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the Name of the Lord. :THE Lord is my shepherd: therefore can I lack nothing. :He shall feed me in a green pasture: and lead me forth beside the waters of comfort. :He shall convert my soul: and bring me forth in the paths of righteousness, for his name's sake. :Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff comfort me. :Thou shalt prepare a table before me against them that trouble me: thou hast anointed my head with oil, and my cup shall be full. :But thy loving-kindness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. :MAN that is born of a woman hath but a short time to live, and is full of misery. He cometh up, and is cut down, like a flower; he fleeth as it were a shadow, and never continueth in one stay. :In the midst of life we are in death: of whom may we seek for succour, but of thee, O Lord, who for our sins art justly displeased? :Yet, O Lord God most holy, O Lord most mighty, :O holy and most merciful Saviour, deliver us not into the bitter pains of eternal death. :Thou knowest, Lord, the secrets of our hearts; shut not thy merciful ears to our prayer; but spare us, Lord most holy, O God most mighty, O holy and merciful Saviour, thou most worthy Judge eternal, suffer us not, at our last hour, for any pains of death, to fall from thee. :FOR AS MUCH as it hath pleased Almighty God of his great mercy to take unto himself the soul of our dear sister here departed, we therefore commit her body to the ground; earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust; in sure and certain hope of the Resurrection to eternal life through our Lord Joshua Christos; who shall change our vile body that it may be like unto his glorious body, according to the mighty working, whereby he is able to subdue all things to himself. :I HEARD a voice from heaven, saying unto me, Write, From henceforth blessed are the dead which die in the Lord: even so saith the Spirit; for they rest from their labours. :Lord, have mercy upon us. :Christ, have mercy upon us. :Lord, have mercy upon us. :GOD be in my head, :And in my understanding; :God be in mine eyes, :And in my looking; :God be in my mouth, :And in my speaking :God be in my heart, :And in my thinking; :God be at mine end, :And at my departing. :Sadicus lowers his head and throws dirt into the grave. Standing at the head of the grave he says nothing until everone has left, then he says safe journey and turns and heads back towards the church. In the morning the gave willl have been filled and the head stone place. Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Dickhatch :me enters the church and sits at the back waiting for sun to enter so they can be baptized together Ladysunshine :Sunshine had tidied herself up as best she could. She walked down the aisle to the little alter and knelt at it, crossing herself and asking jah to be with her today and to be with Dickhatch as he was to be baptised also. :Looking around the church as she stood, she saw Dick sitting in a pew. She gave a grin and walked quietly to his side to sit and wait for Arazal. She wondered if it was alright to hold his hand in church, and thinking jah would not mind, she softly placed her hand in Dicks and closed her eyes in prayer. Arazyal :mother Arazyal enters the church and sees Dickhatch and Ladysunshine sitting together near the back of the church. Knowing that they are there to be baptized Mother Ara tells them to wait and she would be ready for them in a few moments. Retreating to her study she soon returns dressed in her robes and motions them down to the alter. At the alter they both get on their knees and Mother Arazyal begins :Dickhatch and Ladysunshine, you have come here today to be baptized into the Church of the Aristotelian faithful. Through this sacrament, you will enter the Aristotelian community, and be cleansed of your sins. :To do this, you must in good faith vow to uphold the virtues of the Aristotelian Church and repeat its Creed: :I believe in Jah, the all powerful Father, :Creator of the Sky and the Earth, :Hell and Paradise, :Judge of our heart until the hour of death. :And in Aristotle, the prophet, :The son of Nicomaque and Phaetis, :Sent to teach wisdom :And the divine laws of the Universe to straying men. :I also believe in Christ, :Son of Mary and Joseph. :Who dedicated His life to show us the way to Paradise. :Thus after He suffered under Pilate, :He died as a martyr to save us. :He joined the Sun where Aristotle waited on the right-hand side of the Father. :I believe in Divine Action; :In the Holy Roman Aristotelian Church; :In the communion of Saints; :In the remission of sins; :In Eternal Life. :Amen. :mother Arazyal waits for them to recite the creed Dickhatch :dickhatch looks at sunshine and starts to recite the creed :I believe in Jah, the all powerful Father, :Creator of the Sky and the Earth, :Hell and Paradise, :Judge of our heart until the hour of death. :And in Aristotle, the prophet, :The son of Nicomaque and Phaetis, :Sent to teach wisdom :And the divine laws of the Universe to straying men. :I also believe in Christ, :Son of Mary and Joseph. :Who dedicated His life to show us the way to Paradise. :Thus after He suffered under Pilate, :He died as a martyr to save us. :He joined the Sun where Aristotle waited on the right-hand side of the Father. :I believe in Divine Action; :In the Holy Roman Aristotelian Church; :In the communion of Saints; :In the remission of sins; :In Eternal Life. :Amen. :he looks at sunshine and says '' your turn love'' Ladysunshine :LadySunshine clears her throat and tries to repeat the prayer clearly , looking at Arazal she says, :I believe in Jah, the all powerful Father, :Creator of the Sky and the Earth, :Hell and Paradise, :Judge of our heart until the hour of death. :And in Aristotle, the prophet, :The son of Nicomaque and Phaetis, :Sent to teach wisdom :And the divine laws of the Universe to straying men. :I also believe in Christ, :Son of Mary and Joseph. :Who dedicated His life to show us the way to Paradise. :Thus after He suffered under Pilate, :He died as a martyr to save us. :He joined the Sun where Aristotle waited on the right-hand side of the Father. :I believe in Divine Action; :In the Holy Roman Aristotelian Church; :In the communion of Saints; :In the remission of sins; :In Eternal Life. :Amen. Arazyal :After listening to both Dickhatch and Ladysunshine recite the church creed mother Ara continues :"You have accepted the tenets of the Church. I will now read a passage from the Book of Virtue." :Opening the book she begins to read the passage on friendship. :Friendship is what is most necessary for living, because without friends, no one would choose to live, had he all the goods in the world. And in poverty, as in any other misfortune, Men believe that friends are the only sanctuary. Friendship is, moreover, a saviour for young people, to protect them from error; for old men, to ensure care and to compensate for their lack of activity due to weakness; finally, for those who are the prime of life, to encourage noble actions, because we are therefore more capable in thinking and acting. :"Dickhatch and Ladysunshine with this baptism, you will be initiated into the Aristotelian friendship of the community of believers. Through such friendship the faithful can together follow the path of righteousness that leads to Paradise, celebrating the Eternal Love of Jah, and aiding one another if they happen to stray. :Now I shall wash away your prior sins." :Mother Arazyal then turns and cupping her hands dips water from the baptistery and sprinkles it on Dickhatch's head, she then dips some more and sprinkles it on Ladysunshine's head. Then laying a hand on each ones head she bows and says a short blessing. :Motioning for them to stand, Mother Ara then gives each of them a candle. :"Finally, may these candles represent the guiding light of the Church of which you are now a part." :She watches as they each light their candles and sits them on the alter. :"Remember in your heart the importance of friendship." :Mother Arazyal then gives Dickhatch a quick embrace. :Welcome into the family of the faithful Dickhatch. :She then gives Ladysunshine a quick embrace. :Welcome into the family of the faithful Ladysunshine. :Stepping back Mother Arazyal smiles at the two. :Go in peace my children. Lyrabeecher :Upon arriving in Kendal, Lyra wandered aimlessly for a bit being rather exhausted from her journey. Then, she spotted the church and knew where to venture first. She ran her fingers through her hair and tucked the loose strands on the sides behind her ears. She shook her ragged skirt trying to release the dust and grime but that effort was futile. There was nothing for it, she was filthy and that was that. Somehow Lyra had the feeling that Jah wouldn't mind; she could only hope if the priest saw her that they'd agree. :Lyra stepped into the little church. She suddenly felt very safe and peaceful which was a rather strange feeling for her, one she hadn't felt in a long time. Suddenly, Lyra thought of her mother and nearly sobbed out loud. :She knelt in the nearest pew and prayed to Jah, thanking him for allowing her escape from her captor and asking him to somehow let her parents know that she was alive and wished to be with them. :After she finished her prayer, Lyra simply sat soaking up the calm. It wasn't long before she slumped in her seat, fast asleep. Lyrabeecher :Some time later, Lyra awoke abruptly after a dream that she couldn't remember but made her feel rather unsettled. It took her a moment or two to remember where she was. She felt a bit embarrassed at having fallen asleep in the church. She picked herself up and decided to head out into town again. Maybe she'd find a local tavern and get to know some of the townsfolk. Arazyal :Arazyal arrives at the church early on the Sabbath morning and goes to the alter. There she lights a candle and kneels for a few moments of meditation. Rising to her feet , she goes and gets the wine and bread for the morning mass. After placing them on the alter she rings the bell calling the townspeople to church. She then sits and reads waiting for time for the mass to begin. :When it is time, Mother Arazyal returns to the alter and carefully breaks the bread into smaller pieces, then says a short blessing over it. She then pours the wine into a large mug and again says a blessing over it. She then turns to the gathered congregation. :Before we begin, I have an announcement. :Reaching up on the podium she gets a paper and reads it. :I, Arazyal, priestess of The Church of Kendal, do hereby publish the banns of marriage between Sir Dickhatch, a vegetable farmer of the parish of Kendal, and Ladysunshine, a wheat farmer of the parish of Kendal. The wedding is to be celebrated on October 22, 1456. If any of you know cause or reason why these persons should not be joined together in Holy Matrimony, ye are to declare it. :Having finished reading she then called the people forward and began severing the mass. Dickhatch :dickhatch enters the church on his way to the tavern but remember he needed to talk to ara he decided t pop in quickly :looking around for ara dickhatch sat in a pew and decided to wait and say some prayers quielty to himself and t jah to pass the time Arazyal :As she entered the church Arazyal noticed someone sitting with their head bowed. Approaching she recognized it was Dickhatch. Thinking maybe he was there to see her about the wedding she goes nearer. :Dickhatch, my child, is there something I can help you with? Dickhatch :yes ara i was wondering if everything for the wedding day had been set and i was wandering wether you or niccola would decorate the church for the occasion it would be a great help if you could Niccola :I have no problem decorating the church in a few flowers if Arazyal doesn't mind. I won't over do it or anything. Ladysunshine :Noccola, that would be splendid. And your Emporium for the reception - do you need any help with that? :LadySunshine pops into the church and finds a quiet pew where the sunlight is peeping through the stained glass window of St Anthony - finder of lost causes... asking Jah to ask St Anthony to remind Dickhatch to turn up at the wedding, and not to forget. Sighing, she began to have small doubts build up in her about doing the right thing. She loved him so, but did not want to trap him if it was not what he wanted. She stayed in prayer for some time, seeking her heart. Ladysunshine :Slowly she gets up, goes the the little side alter, lights a candle and bows her head. To some it looks reverent, to her it is to hide the tears falling down her cheeks. She whispers a prayer from her heart for the safety of Dickhatch and for the strength they both need over these few days. Crossing herself, she moves back into the shadows and leaves through the side door. Page 16 Page 17 Category:Work in Progress